Emaar Properties moved further on closing its deal to acquire Dubai Creek Harbour from Dubai Holding.
The UAE real estate major also sealed sale of its online retail platform Namshi to Noon.
The final movements on the two deals followed the company’s shareholders’ giving the green signal on Wednesday to the management’s decisions on them.
A spokesperson of the company said the general assembly meeting represented the final step in the completion of two high-profile transactions for Emaar.
“It reflects the company’s ongoing strategy to maximise the core business, while continuing to offer outstanding value for our shareholders,” the spokesperson said.
Last month, Emaar announced reaching an understanding with Dubai Holdings to fully acquire Dubai Creek Harbour for AED7.5 billion ($2.04 billion), to be paid equally in cash and shares of Emaar.
The company said its shareholders approved a motion to acquire assets from Dubai Holding and the issuance of a mandatory convertible bond with an aggregate value of AED3.75 billion to Dubai Holding.
This represents the equity portion of the acquisition deal, the total cost of which will amount to AED7.5 billion.
The deal will make Dubai Holding the second largest shareholder of Emaar.
The mandatory convertible bond will be convertible into 659 million new shares in Emaar Properties, leading to expansion of the company’s share capital to AED8.83 billion.
The Dubai Creek Harbour project, with stunning views of Burj Khalifa and the Downtown area over the creek, ran into a major controversy recently, with Arabian Business reporting that some of the real estate brokers in Dubai were continuing to use images of the project in online advertising, even as questions were raised regarding its development.
Last week, Arabian Business reported on top Dubai real estate brokers using rendered images of the Dubai Creek Tower despite the project remaining on indefinite hold. Advertisements promise “panoramic” and “theatrical” views of the tower, but the project has remained undeveloped for over two years.
The project has 7.3 million sqm of residential space, 711,399 sqm of serviced apartments and 700,000 sqm of parks and open spaces.
It’s located just five minutes from the Ras Al Khor wildlife sanctuary and a 10 minute-drive from Dubai International Airport.
Emaar said its shareholders also approved the sale of Namshi to Noon for a total cash consideration of AED1.231 billion ($ 335.2 million), representing a premium of AED127 million on the total investment.
Namshi is owned by Emaar Malls Management, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Emaar Properties.
The sale is representative of Emaar’s strategy to divest assets which are not reflective of its core business, with proceeds to be reinvested into the real estate development business, building on its core elements and offering a sustained value for shareholders.
The transaction is expected to be closed in the coming months, subject to meeting various conditions, including, inter alia, final regulatory approvals.
Shareholders also approved a special resolution regarding the abolition of the minimum contribution of UAE nationals and GCC nationals in the company.
This would mean that there would be no shareholding limit for non-UAE nationals.
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